Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh on Wednesday castigated the Parkash Singh Badal government for allegedly neglecting families of fallen soldiers in the state.

He said the SAD-BJP government had failed to maintain a statue of Victoria Cross and Maha Vir Chakra recipient Subedar Nand Singh at Fauji (Shaheed) Chowk in Bathinda.

Amarinder on Wednesday led a large gathering of party workers and local residents in cleaning up the “neglected statue”.

Expressing anguish over its condition, Amarinder said there was no point in setting up memorials if the government could not ensure their proper maintenance.

He urged the Indian Army to take over the upkeep of such properties to prevent them from falling into disrepair.

“Our martyrs deserve no less,” he said.

Amarinder, who hails from the first Sikh battalion, described the condition of Nand Singh’s memorial as “yet another glaring instance of how little the (ruling) Badals care for our soldiers and their memories.”

The soldier also finds mention in Amarinder’s book ‘Lest We Forget’.

“Unfortunately, the Badal government has never shown much respect for our army or its personnel,” he said, referring to the prolonged stir of the war widows in Punjab.

“The war widows have been trying unsuccessfully to draw the government’s attention to their plight,” said Amarinder Singh, while reiterating his commitment to addressing the concerns of the widows and families of the martyred soldiers.

Amarinder reached Bathinda, considered a Badal stronghold, yesterday at the culmination of the second day of his Kisan Yatra roadshow.